#413 Gary Okazaki aka @garythefoodie - His favorite pop-up restaurants in Portland and how to find them + his most anticipated openings in 2025
Release Date: 04/04/2025
RATF Classic: #383 Rob Sample - Mother's Bistro
Right At The Fork
We look back to April of last year, and our conversation with Rob Sample of Mother's Bistro. ORIGINAL POST: Rob Sample joins us on the podcast. He's the Chief Schmoozing Officer at Mother’s Bistro, where his wife Lisa has been well known as the chef and restaurateur since 2002. Lisa just won the area's "Most Remarkable Woman" award on KOIN and we thought there was no one better to talk about why that's an apt designation for Lisa than Rob. Rob has lots of Portland stories to tell, and also stores of raising two young kids with Lisa after tragedy struck a few years...
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#414 Joel Gunderson - Heavenly Creatures: The affects of threatened tariffs, restaurant sustainability, James Beard nomination and superior hospitality
Right At The Fork
Joel Gunderson of Heavenly Creatures, Coopers Hall, Grassa, St. Jack and a host of places, joins us again to talk about how deeply Trump's tariffs would affect the wine and restaurant industries. Coincidentally, the tariffs were suspended just minutes before we started recording this episode. But we talk about the stress uncertainty puts on the industry and how things have just begun to bounce back in Portland. We also touch on what it takes to become one of the most celebrated people in the industry nationwide, and some of the ways his staff approaches hospitality....
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#413 Gary Okazaki aka @garythefoodie - His favorite pop-up restaurants in Portland and how to find them + his most anticipated openings in 2025
Right At The Fork
Gary Okazaki aka @garythefoodie joins us for the umpteenth time to share information on his favorite pop-up restaurants in Portland, including where to find them on Insta, and where they take place. Also, he'll go over some of his most anticipated openings in 2025. Right at the Fork is supported by: Zupan's Markets: RingSide SteakHouse: Portland Food Adventures:
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#412 DaMenga Weaverhuff and Thomas Pisha-Duffly - Gado Gado and Oma's Hideway (and their Steelport Knife demo)
Right At The Fork
We are joined by two of the people responsible for the accolades and wonderful food that comes out of the kitchens of Gado Gado and Oma's Hideway. DaMenga Weaverhuff is Executive Chef, and has been leading the kitchens for a good while now, while Tom Pisha-Duffly is the owner and since Chef DeMenga's promotion has assumed a larger role, which we discuss in some detail during this interview. DaMenga was born and raised in Columbus Ohio, where he realized he wanted to be in the restaurant industry. He spent four years at the University of Cincinnati studying business...
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RATF Classic: #402 Andrea Falaschi - 4th Generation Tuscan Butcher and Maialata Marquee Guest
Right At The Fork
Visit for details on the Fin & Feast dinner with Andrea at Local Ocean in Newport. We go back to December 2024 and our converation with Andrea Falaschi, ahead of his visit to Oregon for the Oregon Mailata and special Fin & Feast dinner at Local Ocean in Newport. Joining us this week is Andrea Falaschi, fourth generation butcher from Macelleria Falaschi in San Miniato in the heart of Tuscany. Andrea's family business is celebrating its 100th year in 2025. Andrea takes us through his family history with some anecdotes about how the business started back in 1925 with his...
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#411 Tony Bixler - Local Ocean Seafoods
Right At The Fork
Tony Bixler, president of Local Ocean Seafoods, joins us to discuss the history of Local Ocean, as well as his journey in Oregon in restaurants and life to get where he is today. We will talk about what makes Local Ocean very special and the extra challenges it takes to serve fresh seafood to so many every day. We also discuss a special event at Local Ocean on March 30, 2025 where 4th generation Tuscan butcher Andrea Falaschi joins Chef Enrique Sanchez-Rodriguez at Local Ocean for a special Land N Sea dinner, a rare event at Local Ocean. Tony shares some of his...
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RATF Classic: #370 Peter Kost - Ken's Artisan Pizza and Carina Lounge
Right At The Fork
Now that Ken's Artisan Pizza has officially opened in downtown Bend, we return to our conversation wtih Peter Kost from November of 2023. ORIGINAL POST: Peter Kost grew up in Seattle, where his love for food was established as the son of farmers who sold their goods at the Seattle Public Market. Peter's journey has taken him from restaurant work to wine sales to a long stint at Zupans in grocery management to landing his first restaurant, Lucy's Table on NW 21st in Portland. It was there when he met a fellow by the name of Ken Forkish, from whom he'd buy breads at...
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#410 Elisa Acciai - Tuscany Tour Guide
Right At The Fork
Right at the Fork is supported by: Zupan's Markets: RingSide Steakhouse: Portland Food Adventures: Taking a trip to Tuscany? You'll want to listen to this episode with Elisa Acciai, who's been a tour guide in Florence for years. We talk about her journey from being a Concierge at a 5-Star hotel in Florence to becoming a guide in one of the world's most popular destinations, including the requirements to be licensed to do so in Italy. The balance of family/work life as well. She'll share a few of her recommended restaurants and...
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#409 Jose Lalo Camarena - República
Right At The Fork
This is a must-listen. Chef Jose Camarena, Executive Chef at Portland's highly regarded República, may just be the youngest guest of over 400 on our podcast. But you wouldn't know it if we hadn't drawn attention to that fact. At just 24, he's in a position few others are at his age, and it's easy to see how he got as far as he's gotten at such a young age. We talk about his family Sunday dinners, how he became interested in the food industry and how his family lineage of hard work in horse grooming instilled in him the grit to work hard to reach success in a tough...
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#408 Meg Cotner - Bridgetown Bites
Right At The Fork
Meg Cotner is a freelance writer and editor based in Portland, Oregon via various other places including California to New York.. Meg publishes Bridgetown Bites, which covers restaurants, bars, cafes, food trucks, events, and includes opinion pieces, all centering on the Portland food world.. The site focuses on and news, while dabbling in reviews and other editorial content. We talk about what it requires in time and effort to keep up the site, as well as Meg's personal and business objectives and her writing and eating...
info_outlineGary Okazaki aka @garythefoodie joins us for the umpteenth time to share information on his favorite pop-up restaurants in Portland, including where to find them on Insta, and where they take place. Also, he'll go over some of his most anticipated openings in 2025.
Right at the Fork is supported by:
Zupan's Markets: www.zupans.com
RingSide SteakHouse: www.RingSideSteakhouse.com
Portland Food Adventures: www.PortlandFoodAdventures.com